Discussion

stainless steel wok

How can I properly season my stainless steel wok? It has a wood and black plastic handle so not sure how hot an oven is safe. I have used it many times to fry foods hoping it would eventually get a good seasoned coating. Anytime I wash it, I still get rust on the paper towel when I immediately dry it. Rubbing oil in it right away and still a rusty look on the paper.

Not so. There are many grades of ss. Most pots/pans are made from '1810' grade ss. When heated ss expands and all those little microscopic pores open and when you add food it enters these tiny craters. I only cook with ss pots and pans. I regularly 'season' them. I fill say my 12" c pan with about 1/4" of cheap salt and add enough cheap canola oil to the salt to make a loose 'slurry'. Then I put the pan on high heat until the oil starts smoking then right away outside to allow the pan to cool off. I wipe out the salt/oil mixture and use it on the next pot/pan. I do this about every couple of months. I never wash them with dish soap. Just wipe them out with warm water. The quickest way to loose the 'season' is to use too high a heat.Why the salt/oil? Because when the 'pores expand the salt/oil enters the pores and fills them up. Now you have 'non-stick'. Most of my pans are 18/10 grade. I do have two that are 'T304' surgical grade. These are a much higher grade of ss steel and although I also season them when I do the 18/10 ones I really don't need to so much.http://www.cheftalk.com/t/12287/seaso...

If you get residue on a paper towel when you wash it, you haven't got a true "stainless steel" wok.

They're black steel; they're not stainless and should never be "washed"; just fired up and scrubbed with a kurly kate and lots of hot water.

And of course, if it has a handle covered with wood/plastic it's not the kind of wok made for every-day use in a Chinese household (even though rarely if ever does my wife put her wok in the oven -- why would one do that but to keep-warm in a pinch?)

Get a proper (rust-able) steel wok and study an Asian cook-book in wok seasoning and cleaning practice.

Good news is that carbon steel is the wok to have, as you can season it. A stainless steel wok cannot be seasoned, & isn't any different than any other stainless pan you may own. Good for what it is, but not a wok. But I find the idea of a carbon-steel wok with a "wood and black plastic handle" bizarre, as it can't be seasoned as one would normally do for a carbon-steel wok.

All I can suggest is to lightly oil your wok & heat it to the smoking point on your stovetop. Then let it cool down & wipe it down with a paper towel. Repeat several times. After that, continued cooking use should end up giving you a non-stick surface.

The alternative is the possibility of the handle being held on by a screw. Wood and plastic are never glued to the pan. If so, I would remove the handle, season in the normal manner, and replace the handle.,

Not so. There are many grades of ss. Most pots/pans are made from '1810' grade ss. When heated ss expands and all those little microscopic pores open and when you add food it enters these tiny craters. I only cook with ss pots and pans. I regularly 'season' them. I fill say my 12" c pan with about 1/4" of cheap salt and add enough cheap canola oil to the salt to make a loose 'slurry'. Then I put the pan on high heat until the oil starts smoking then right away outside to allow the pan to cool off. I wipe out the salt/oil mixture and use it on the next pot/pan. I do this about every couple of months. I never wash them with dish soap. Just wipe them out with warm water. The quickest way to loose the 'season' is to use too high a heat.Why the salt/oil? Because when the 'pores expand the salt/oil enters the pores and fills them up. Now you have 'non-stick'. Most of my pans are 18/10 grade. I do have two that are 'T304' surgical grade. These are a much higher grade of ss steel and although I also season them when I do the 18/10 ones I really don't need to so much.http://www.cheftalk.com/t/12287/seaso...Read the 'link'.